Interactive serving tray with integrated digital display

ABSTRACT

An interactive serving tray is adapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in a hospitality environment. The interactive serving tray includes a platter defined by a flat surface encompassed by a perimeter barrier, and a mobile computing device affixed to the platter, the device including at least one processor, memory, a communications adapter and a display. Finally, the interactive serving tray includes a delivery manager module stored in the memory and executing by the processor, and including computer program instructions operable to perform receiving into the memory through the adapter, an order of a food or beverage item and identity information of a customer associated with the order, such as a digital image of the customer, and displaying the identity information in the display.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of food and beverage servicedelivery and more particularly to a serving tray adapted to support thedelivery of food and beverages in a hospitality services environment.

Description of the Related Art

In the hospitality industry, particular the hotel and transportationsubsegments, food and beverage services remain an integral aspect of thegeneral delivery of hospitality services. In the transportationsubsegment, for example, in the course of transporting a passengerbetween origin and destination, food and beverages may be provided tothe passenger. Likewise, in the hospitality subsegment, in the course oflodging a guest, food and beverages may be provided to the guest. Inmany instances, a multiplicity of individuals may seek the purchase anddelivery of food or beverages within a bounded area in a concurrentmanner so that a wait staff is required to deliver the ordered food orbeverages to respective customers from the kitchen or bar. In manyinstances, multiple orders are transported from source to customer atthe same time through the use of a serving tray.

Because individual wait staff oftentimes must serve ordered food orbeverages on a serving tray to multiple different patrons in one trip,or even to one patron in a crowded space, knowing the location of thedifferent patrons is of paramount importance in minimizing the timetraveled from food or beverage source to patron, thus minimizing theprobability of food or beverages placed on the serving tray fromspilling or falling to the floor. However, the problem of minimizingtravel time from source to patron can be compounded when the patron isnot stationary at a table or in a room, but roaming a confined area asis often the case in a crowded outdoor pool area or indoor bar area orhotel lobby.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art inrespect to food and beverage delivery and provide a novel andnon-obvious method, system and computer program product for aninteractive serving tray adapted to facilitate the delivery of food orbeverages in a hospitality environment. In an embodiment of theinvention, an interactive serving tray is adapted to facilitate thedelivery of food or beverages in a hospitality environment. Theinteractive serving tray includes a platter defined by a flat surfaceencompassed by a perimeter barrier, and a mobile computing deviceaffixed to the platter, the device including at least one processor,memory, a communications adapter and a display. Finally, the interactiveserving tray includes a delivery manager module stored in the memory andexecuting by the processor, and including computer program instructionsoperable to perform receiving into the memory through the adapter, anorder of a food or beverage item and identity information of a customerassociated with the order, such as a digital image of the customer, anddisplaying the identity information in the display.

In one aspect of the embodiment, the computer program instructions arefurther operable to receive through the adapter, an indication of acontemporaneous location of the customer and display in the display, theindication of the contemporaneous location. In another aspect of theembodiment, the computer program instructions are yet further operableto subsequently receive through the adapter, an indication of a changedlocation of the customer, to generate a visual or audible alert in themobile computing device and to display the indication of the changedlocation. In yet another aspect of the embodiment, the computer programinstructions are further operable to receive through the adapter, anindication of a contemporaneous location of a different individualassociated with the customer and to display the indication of thecontemporaneous location.

In even yet another aspect of the embodiment, the computer programinstructions are further operable to receive through the adapter, anindication of a contemporaneous location of the customer, to compute anavigation route from a contemporaneous location of the serving tray tothe contemporaneous location of the customer and to display the computednavigation route. Finally, in a further aspect of the embodiment, thecomputer program instructions are further operable to receive in a userinterface to the mobile computing device, an indication that the food orbeverage item has been delivered to the customer and to transmit throughthe adapter, the indication that the food or beverage item has beendelivered to the customer.

In a different embodiment of the invention, a data processing system isadapted to support a multiplicity of interactive serving trays, eachbeing adapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in ahospitality environment. The system includes a host computing systemincluding one or more computers, each with memory and at least oneprocessor. The system also includes a multiplicity of interactiveserving trays communicatively coupled to the host computing system overa computer communications network. Finally, the system includes a servertray management module stored in the memory of the host computingsystem. The server tray management module includes program instructionsenabled during execution to transmit to each of the differentinteractive serving trays, different orders of different food orbeverage items for different customers, along with identity informationfor the different customers.

Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in thedescription which follows, and in part will be obvious from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The aspectsof the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elementsand combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It isto be understood that both the foregoing general description and thefollowing detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only andare not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute partof this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention andtogether with the description, serve to explain the principles of theinvention. The embodiments illustrated herein are presently preferred,it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to theprecise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a pictorial illustration of an interactive serving trayadapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in a hospitalityenvironment;

FIG. 2 is a schematic illustration of a data processing system adaptedto support a multiplicity of interactive serving trays, each beingadapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in a hospitalityenvironment; and,

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a process for supporting food orbeverage delivery through an interactive serving tray.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention provide for an interactive serving trayadapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in a hospitalityenvironment. In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a mobilecomputing device is affixed to a serving tray. The mobile computingdevice includes a communications adapter through which data may bereceived from a transmitter of a remotely disposed order processingsystem. The mobile computing device additionally provides a displaythrough which the data received through the adapter is displayed. Thedata may include, for example, a digital image of a customer orderingfood or beverages, an indication of a last known location of thecustomer, an image of an individual with whom the customer is known tobe contemporaneously co-located, or a map indicating a suggested routeto the customer. Importantly, the data displayed in the display maychange as the location of the customer changes, even while the servingtray is carried from a source of the food or beverages to the customer.To that end, a visual or audio alert may be presented through theserving tray as data displayed in the display is updated through theadapter. As well, upon delivery of the food or beverages to thecustomer, the mobile computing device may transmit a delivery messagethrough the communications adapter to the remotely disposed orderprocessing system.

In further illustration, FIG. 1 pictorially shows an interactive servingtray adapted to facilitate the delivery of food or beverages in ahospitality environment. As shown in FIG. 1, an interactive serving tray100 has affixed thereto a mobile computing device 180, for instanceflush mounted to a top surface of a platter portion of the serving tray100 enclosed by perimeter barrier. Different customers 140 within adefined geographic area present orders to a food and beverage source 130for different beverage items 110, food items 120 or both. When aparticular order of beverage items 110 and/or food items 120 is ready tobe served to a corresponding one of the customers 140, the interactiveserving tray 100 receives at the food and beverage source 130, data 150indicative of an image 160 of the corresponding one of the customers 140and a last known location 170 of the corresponding one of the customers140.

Delivery manager logic 190 executing in memory of the mobile computingdevice 180 then processes the data 150 to display the image 160 in adisplay portion of the mobile computing device 180 along with anindication of the last known location 170, for example a textualspecification of the last known location, or as an alternative, anavigation route from a location of the interactive serving tray 100 tothe last known location 170 of the corresponding one of the customers140. Upon the beverage items 110 and/or food items 120 having beensuccessfully delivered to the corresponding one of the customers 140, anindication can be provided through a user interface presented in themobile computing device 180 of the delivery so that the deliver managerlogic 190 may then transmit to an order processing system that the orderhad been successfully delivered to the corresponding one of thecustomers 140.

The process described in connection with FIG. 1 may be implemented in acomputer data processing system. In further illustration, FIG. 2schematically shows a=a data processing system adapted to support amultiplicity of interactive serving trays, each being adapted tofacilitate the delivery of food or beverages in a hospitalityenvironment. The system includes a host computing system 280 thatincludes one or more computers, each with memory and at least oneprocessor. The host computing system 280 is communicatively coupled todifferent interactive serving trays over computer communications network270, for instance by way of wireless communications.

Each of the interactive serving trays includes a platter 200 bounded bya perimeter barrier to prevent food and beverage items disposed on a topsurface of the platter 200 from falling off the platter 200. Affixed tothe platter 200 is a mobile computing device that includes memory 210,at least one processor 220, a display 230 and a communications adapter240, such as a wireless network interface card, or cellular broadbandcommunications circuitry. The mobile computing device may be embedded ina top surface of the platter 200, or mounded to the perimeter barrier ofthe platter 200, as two differing examples.

An operating system 250 executes in the memory 210 and supports theoperation of a delivery management module 300A. The delivery managementmodule 300A includes computer program instructions operable tocommunicate over the computer communications network 270 with computerprogram instructions of a server tray management module 300B executingin the memory of the host computing system 280. In this regard, theprogram instructions of the server tray management module 300B transmitto the program instructions of the delivery management module 300A byway of adapter 240, an indication of an order of food and/or beveragesalong with data identifying a customer to receive the food and/orbeverages. Optionally, the data includes a last known location of thecustomer, either expressly, or in connection with a known location of adifferent individual known to be proximate to the customer.

The program instructions of the delivery management module 300A arefurther enabled to display in the display 230 an image of the customeras provided by the program instructions of the server tray managementmodule 300B, along with a navigation path to the last known location ofthe customer. Optionally, as the last known location changes, a newlocation may be provided by the program instructions of the server traymanagement module 300B over the computer communications network 270 tothe program instructions of the delivery management module 300A by wayof adapter 240 in response to which the program instructions of thedelivery management module 300A generates an alert 260 such as a visualalert or an audible alert along with a new display in the display 230 ofa new location. Optionally, the program instructions of the deliverymanagement module 300A display a new navigation route in the display tothe changed location.

In even yet further illustration of the operation of the deliverymanagement module 300A, FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a processfor supporting food or beverage delivery through an interactive servingtray. Beginning in block 310, an order is received for food and/orbeverage items in association with a specific interactive serving trayand a specific customer. In block 320, an image of the customer isretrieved as is a location of the customer in block 330. In block 340,the image and location are transmitted to the interactive serving trayfor display therein. Thereafter, in block 350, the location of thecustomer may be monitored to detect any changes in movement of thecustomer, either directly or implicitly in connection with a change inlocation of a different individual associated previously with thecustomer.

In decision block 360, it is determined if the location of the customerhas changed. If so, in block 370 an alert is transmitted to theinteractive serving tray along with a new location of the customer.Thereafter, once again the location of the customer is monitored inblock 350. In decision block 360, if no change in location isdetermined, in decision block 380 it is further determined if the orderhas been successfully delivered. If not, once again the location of thecustomer is monitored in block 350 and the process repeats. In decisionblock 380, when it is ultimately determined that the order has beensuccessfully delivered, in block 390 the order is cleared from theinteractive serving tray.

The present invention may be embodied within a system, a method, acomputer program product or any combination thereof. The computerprogram product may include a computer readable storage medium or mediahaving computer readable program instructions thereon for causing aprocessor to carry out aspects of the present invention. The computerreadable storage medium can be a tangible device that can retain andstore instructions for use by an instruction execution device. Thecomputer readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limitedto, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device, an opticalstorage device, an electromagnetic storage device, a semiconductorstorage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network. The computer readable program instructions mayexecute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer,as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer andpartly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer orserver. Aspects of the present invention are described herein withreference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods,apparatus (systems), and computer program products according toembodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each block ofthe flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations ofblocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can beimplemented by computer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general-purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein includes anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which includes one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

Finally, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describingparticular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of theinvention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” areintended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearlyindicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms“includes” and/or “including,” when used in this specification, specifythe presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended toinclude any structure, material, or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of the present invention has been presented for purposes ofillustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive orlimited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications andvariations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the artwithout departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Theembodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain theprinciples of the invention and the practical application, and to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention forvarious embodiments with various modifications as are suited to theparticular use contemplated.

Having thus described the invention of the present application in detailand by reference to embodiments thereof, it will be apparent thatmodifications and variations are possible without departing from thescope of the invention defined in the appended claims as follows:

We claim:
 1. An interactive serving tray adapted to facilitate thedelivery of food or beverages in a hospitality environment, theinteractive serving tray comprising: a platter defined by a flat surfaceencompassed by a perimeter barrier; a mobile computing device affixed tothe platter, the device comprising at least one processor, memory, acommunications adapter and a display; and, a delivery manager modulestored in the memory and executing by the at least one processor, themodule comprising computer program instructions operable to perform:receiving into the memory through the adapter, an order of a food orbeverage item and identity information of a customer associated with theorder; and, displaying the identity information in the display.
 2. Thetray of claim 1, wherein the identity information is a digital image ofthe customer.
 3. The tray of claim 1, wherein the computer programinstructions are further operable to perform: receiving through theadapter, an indication of a contemporaneous location of the customer;and, displaying in the display, the indication of the contemporaneouslocation.
 4. The tray of claim 3, wherein the computer programinstructions are yet further operable to perform: subsequently receivingthrough the adapter, an indication of a changed location of thecustomer; generating an alert in the mobile computing device, selectedfrom the group consisting of a visual alert and an audible alert; and,displaying in the display, the indication of the changed location. 5.The tray of claim 1, wherein the computer program instructions arefurther operable to perform: receiving through the adapter, anindication of a contemporaneous location of a different individualassociated with the customer; and, displaying in the display, theindication of the contemporaneous location.
 6. The tray of claim 1,wherein the computer program instructions are further operable toperform: receiving through the adapter, an indication of acontemporaneous location of the customer; computing a navigation routefrom a contemporaneous location of the serving tray to thecontemporaneous location of the customer; and, displaying in thedisplay, the computed navigation route.
 7. The tray of claim 1, whereinthe computer program instructions are further operable to perform:receiving in a user interface to the mobile computing device, anindication that the food or beverage item has been delivered to thecustomer; and, transmitting through the adapter, the indication that thefood or beverage item has been delivered to the customer.
 8. A dataprocessing system adapted to support a multiplicity of interactiveserving trays, each being adapted to facilitate the delivery of food orbeverages in a hospitality environment, the system comprising: a hostcomputing system comprising one or more computers, each with memory andat least one processor; a multiplicity of interactive serving trayscommunicatively coupled to the host computing system over a computercommunications network, each of the interactive serving trayscomprising: a platter defined by a flat surface encompassed by aperimeter barrier; a mobile computing device affixed to the platter, thedevice comprising at least one processor, memory, a communicationsadapter and a display; and, a delivery manager module stored in thememory of the mobile computing device and executing by the at least oneprocessor of the mobile computing device, the module comprising computerprogram instructions operable to perform: receiving into the memorythrough the adapter from the host computing system, an order of a foodor beverage item and identity information of a customer associated withthe order; and, displaying the identity information in the display; and,a server tray management module stored in the memory of the hostcomputing system, the server tray management module comprising programinstructions enabled during execution to perform: transmitting to eachof the different interactive serving trays, different orders ofdifferent food or beverage items for different customers, along withidentity information for the different customers.
 9. The system of claim8, wherein the identity information is a digital image of the customer.10. The system of claim 8, wherein the computer program instructions ofeach of the interactive serving trays are further operable to perform:receiving through the adapter, an indication of a contemporaneouslocation of the customer; and, displaying in the display, the indicationof the contemporaneous location.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein thecomputer program instructions of each of the interactive serving traysare yet further operable to perform: subsequently receiving through theadapter, an indication of a changed location of the customer; generatingan alert in the mobile computing device, selected from the groupconsisting of a visual alert and an audible alert; and, displaying inthe display, the indication of the changed location.
 12. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the computer program instructions of each of theinteractive serving trays are yet further operable to perform: receivingthrough the adapter, an indication of a contemporaneous location of adifferent individual associated with the customer; and, displaying inthe display, the indication of the contemporaneous location.
 13. Thesystem of claim 8, wherein the computer program instructions of each ofthe interactive serving trays are yet further operable to perform:receiving through the adapter, an indication of a contemporaneouslocation of the customer; computing a navigation route from acontemporaneous location of the serving tray to the contemporaneouslocation of the customer; and, displaying in the display, the computednavigation route.
 14. The system of claim 8, wherein the computerprogram instructions of each of the interactive serving trays are yetfurther operable to perform: receiving in a user interface to the mobilecomputing device, an indication that the food or beverage item has beendelivered to the customer; and, transmitting through the adapter, theindication that the food or beverage item has been delivered to thecustomer.
 15. A computer program product for facilitating the deliveryof food or beverages in a hospitality environment, the computer programproduct including a computer readable storage medium having programinstructions embodied therewith, the program instructions executable bya device to cause the device to perform a method including: receivinginto the memory through an adapter of mobile computing device affixed toa serving tray, an order of a food or beverage item, an image of acustomer associated with the order and an indication of acontemporaneous location of the customer; and, displaying the image anda navigation route to the contemporaneous location in a display of themobile computing device.
 16. The computer program product of claim 15,wherein the method further comprising: subsequently receiving throughthe adapter, an indication of a changed location of the customer;generating an alert in the mobile computing device, selected from thegroup consisting of a visual alert and an audible alert; and, displayingin the display, the indication of the changed location.
 17. The computerprogram product of claim 15, wherein the method further comprises:receiving through the adapter, an indication of a contemporaneouslocation of a different individual associated with the customer; and,additionally displaying in the display, an image of the differentindividual and the indication of the contemporaneous location.
 18. Thecomputer program product of claim 15, wherein the method furthercomprises: receiving from in a user interface to the mobile computingdevice, an indication that the food or beverage item has been deliveredto the customer; and, transmitting through the adapter to a remote orderprocessing system, the indication that the food or beverage item hasbeen delivered to the customer.